Loss leads to volunteer work

Trio find meaning through encouraging hospice clients

JONESBORO -- Opal Adkisson's closest relatives are her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

"I've lost both sons and my husband," said Adkisson, 88, of Jonesboro. "In 1988, my son brought me over here to care for me, and I lost him in '08."

Her loss has led her to helping other Craighead County residents who are the primary caregivers for their terminally ill loved ones. Adkisson; Ellie Miller, 69, and Joan Lunsford, 81, are known affectionately as "The Red Ladies."

The work began 2 1/2 years ago when Adkisson's granddaughter told her they needed volunteers at Home Health Professionals and Hospice Inc. While unsure at first, Adkisson agreed to help along with two of her church friends, Miller and Lunsford.

Lunsford lost a son, a veteran who earned a Purple Heart, in January. Miller was the primary caregiver for her late husband after he experienced complications from diabetes. It took time for Miller to adjust after his death in 2006.

Volunteer coordinator Robyn Carter said the women realized that they could relate to the situation after learning more about the company, which provides home health care and hospice services in northeast Arkansas and two Missouri counties. The trio also underwent eight hours of volunteer training.

"At our age, it has really blessed us because we get to talk to the people and help," Lunsford told The Jonesboro Sun, adding that it also gets them out of the house.

The volunteers work every other Wednesday to help the company with paperwork and visit Craighead County caregivers and, if allowed, their terminally ill patients.

The clients' personal loss "helps us because we know what they are going through," Adkisson said. "We can give them the encouragement they need because they need all the encouragement they can get."

Miller said the ones they visit mostly need someone to listen, give them a hug and say "call me if you need me."

But their work doesn't stop there. Carter said the women once gave a local caregiver his first birthday cake for his 57th birthday.

Metro on 05/26/2014

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